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I tend toward the dramatic even though I yearn for ho-hum. Why is it that I seem to be perpetually putting out metaphorical fires? My inner voice says I must actually thrive on the drama even though I don't think I do. Nothing terribly dramatic has happened, I am just in a funk. No need to panic; It doesn't last long, and I'll probably be over it before you read this. The disappointment? frustration? melancholy? started last weekend. I wasn't able to get a lesson, but I felt really good about how I handled Saturday's ride and even my ride on Sunday. But then, each day's ride got a bit wonkier than the previous one. We had some really windy weather, and my arena is surrounded by cottonwood trees that shake and rattle in blustery weather. To top it off, the tree-lined side of the arena is lined with grass and weeds, so when it's windy, that fence line gives spooky horses all the cause they need to act up. And if all that isn't enough, it's also deeply shaded in the afternoon. It's basically a house of horror for the big brown horse.  So scary on a windy day. For several days, I rode with patience and talked Izzy through his tension. By Wednesday, I realized his behavior wasn't due to the windy weather, or at least not all of it anyway. No matter how many of my shiny new tools I used, he just wouldn't play ball. He was braced through his poll and couldn't do a training level transition no matter how patient I was. I realized that I needed to call out our favorite chiropractor. I also cancelled this Saturday's lesson. What was the point? It didn't make any sense to work on anything when Izzy is sore. This doesn't seem like a big enough deal to put me in a funk, but this horse is just tiring. I have never owned a horse who was so hard on himself. Without an adjustment at least every eight to twelve weeks, sometimes more frequently, he's just not rideable. I know that, and I have the chiropractor out as needed, but there are times - like this weekend, when the chiropractor is not available. We have a tentative appointment for this afternoon, but even if he can come, I haven't ridden since last Wednesday. Big deal, I know, but I was hoping to take Izzy to small show on Sunday.  If I am totally honest, the funk is partly to do with the fact that I have finally admitted that Izzy and I are never going to be as successful as Speedy and I were. I am disappointed. It's not a deal breaker though. I am becoming a much better rider than I ever would have been had Izzy been easy. It's a bit like the O. Henry tale, Gift of the Magi. The husband gives his wife a beautiful hair comb, but she has sold her hair to buy him a chain for the pocket watch he sold to buy the hair comb. In my version of the O. Henry tale, I am a much better rider, but I don't have horse who enjoys showing.
Hopefully the chiropractor makes it out today. If not, I doubt I'll bother with the show. Big sigh ... Izzy never makes things easy. There's hey, we're getting somewhere and a whole lot of Dude, figure it out! There's rarely anything else. This past two or three weeks have been more of the seriously? kind. Over the weekend I tried yet another strategy to get him focused and listening.  "I listen!" There are three main components that keep Izzy and me out of the show ring: leaning on the bit, tightness in his back, and no stride length in back. These are all mostly the same thing, but over the years, I've been able to get one or two of them fixed, but without all three things working well, we're just not going to be able to show.  He's got all the parts; we just need to get them working together. For a long time, I fought the heaviness thing. He just would not flex his poll or unlock his jaw. Time and changing bits really helped with that. Then it was his tight back. He was simply unable to stretch over his topline. Patience and a whole lot of long and low have unlocked his back so that now it actually swings - sometimes. Once his back was moving, his stride opened up. For a few minutes last month, we had it all - a poll with flexion, a swinging back, and length of stride.  Remember this? And then we crashed and burned. Out of nowhere, he has started to once again lean on the bit to the point where I have no steering or brakes. Never one to give up, I tried a new strategy. Rather than focus on getting his back to swing, or engaging his hind end - why do that when he's blasting through my hands?, I focused on suppling his poll and the base of his withers.  I would love to say that getting him to let go of the bit and carry his big noggin himself did the trick, but it didn't. We've spent a couple of weeks working on the idea, but he still thinks the idea is a crappy one. So crappy in fact that he'd rather duke it out with me for an hour and a half rather than carry the bit lightly for 30 minutes.  Always full of tricks! It's a good thing we both have a pretty good sense of humor.
... metaphorically speaking. We haven't had any measurable rain since maybe March. As our favorite meteorologist put it, "If we do see some precipitation next week, it will mark the second latest start to the rainy season for Bakersfield." So those clouds aren't real.  Where are you, happy Brown Horse? Since I already had my pity party - many thanks to my ranch owner for being such a good listener and having such a warm shoulder upon which to cry (not really, but she would have if needed), here's the short story: My relaxed, happy, shiny, Big Brown Horse has disappeared, and in his place is a hot mess.  Remember these days? They're back. As we all know, I am not a quitter. Sometimes I wish I were; life would be be a lot easier. So instead of throwing in the towel, I texted my trainer and asked what the freaking hell was going on. Chemaine Hurtado, owner and trainer at Symphony Dressage Stables, isn't a quitter either, so on the fly she came up with a game plan to help me find my horse of last month.
Today at lunch marks the beginning of my Thanksgiving break. As I mentioned above, rain is unlikely, so I have a week of nothing to do but ride. Chemaine's plan involves a lot of riding. Think about it like an endurance ride she said. My world might not be filled with rainbows and unicorns right now, but I can always find a silver lining. I love riding, and now I get to do a lot of it. Wish me luck. I love Speedy, I really do. That horse has helped me accomplish so many goals. He's even more special considering that he wasn't bred specifically for dressage, but he does it anyway. Despite being amazing, there are still days when he makes me so mad. After Saturday's disaster of a ride, I shot off a text to Chemaine Hurtado, owner and trainer at Symphony Dressage Stables.  I had to bleep out a word. On Sunday morning, after yet another ride with nothing but bolty, head-in-the-air-canters, I simply stopped him, it couldn't even be called a halt, and slid off. His level of try had dropped to zero, and he was nothing but pissed. It would have been hard to say who was more frustrated, him or me. I sent Chemaine yet another text.  I had to bleep out another word. It would seem that being a year-end winner and recipient of tons of awards doesn't mean squat when you move up a level. Have a slice of humble pie, Sweaney, your head was getting too big for your helmet.
Third Level is definitely kicking our butts. But first, a little bit of a backstory ... I've had migraines since I was a little kid. As I got older, they got worse like they sometimes do. For the most part, they had been manageable with the right prescription ... until last summer. My insurance plan took my prescription off the "approved list" and substituted it for a less effective generic.  Me on the left, Grandma, little sister to the right. Over the summer, the headaches got worse, so I did some investigating. I got my eyes checked - new glasses were ordered, and I tried a bunch of different migraine medications. None of them worked. About 2 weeks ago, I got a migraine that lasted for 10 days. I missed a number of riding days and lived in excruciating pain. On Wednesday, I saw a neurologist, and on Thursday I had an MRI. Even in pain that was so severe that I contemplated a lobotomy, all I could wonder was if I'd feel well enough for Sunday's show. The whole yeah my arm is broken, what does that have to with riding? thing. No, I can't see past the ring of fire that is searing my eyeballs, but my horse knows where C is. You get the idea. Once an entry is paid for, I am showing. Fortunately for me, the neurologist got the pain under control, and by Friday I was feeling closer to normal. On Saturday, a group of us met at the show venue for a Ride-A-Test type clinic with Chemaine Hurtado, owner and trainer at Symphony Dressage Stables.  Preparing the ring for the dressage court. PC Gordon Walter If you'll remember, I shared this post about being the local hack. It was written tongue in cheek, of course, but there was definitely an element of truth to it as well. So there I was already feeling way out of my depth, and then on top of that, my brain was so fuzzy that I could barely tell you my name. Chemaine finished up with her first student and called me in. It had been more than six months since I'd schooled in an actual dressage court, so I really wanted to work on some of the trickier movements from Second Level: the three loop serpentine with simple changes at the center line and the 20-meter counter canter half circles. I am not going to lie. I cried. I was just so overwhelmed by all that I needed to fix that I felt defeated before I had even heard the judge's bell. My brain just couldn't get the whole left lead, track right thing. I don't know how Chemaine keeps so positive when she's faced with such a pathetic mess.  Who wouldn't want to show here? PC Gordon Walter But. I am not a quitter. I learned that while riding hundred mile endurance rides. You suck it up, you grit your teeth, you get it done. Chemaine finally got me to use my outside rein to balance Speedy, and suddenly, our counter canter was balanced, and our canter to walk to canter transitions were a bit clearer. The next morning, as I was driving to the show venue, a song by Jarrod Niemann came on the radio. I have an awesome horse in Speedy G, so when I heard the chorus, I knew it was going to be okay. Girl I got this Don't got to think too hard It's a can't miss I know right where to start Yeah the only thing I'm needin' is a girl to play the lead In this cool movie that I'm dreaming up right now And if you're down with that I got this Yeah, I got this And Speedy? He's definitely got it!
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About the Writer and RiderI am a lifelong rider.
I began endurance riding in 1996 where I ultimately completed five, one-day 100 mile races, the 200-mile Death Valley Encounter, and numerous other 50, 65, and 75 mile races. I began showing dressage in 2010. Welcome to my dressage journey. 
Photo by Lori Ovanessian
About Speedy GSpeedy went from endurance horse to dressage horse. After helping me earn a USDF Bronze medal in the summer of 2020, he is now semi-retired. Speedy is a 2004, 15'1 hand, purebred Arabian gelding. His Arabian Horse Registry name is G Ima Starr FA.
July 2020 (PC AJSK Photography)
About IzzyIzzy was started as a four-year old and then spent the next 18 months in pasture growing up. I bought him as a six-year old, and together, we are showing at the lower levels. He is a 2008, 16'3 hand warmblood gelding. His Rheinland Pfalz-saar International (RPSI) name is Imperioso.
March 2021 (PC Tess Michelle Photography)
Bakersfield Dressage approved!
My favorite breeches!
FOR THE SMALLER EQUINE ATHLETE
I love her stuff!
Watercolor Artist and Friend
National Rider Awards
USDF Bronze Medal - 2020
USDF Second Level Rider Performance Award - 2018
USDF First Level Rider Performance Award - 2015
USDF Training Level Rider Performance Award - 2013
State Rider Awards
CDS Ruby Rider Award - 2018
State Horse Awards
Speedy G - 3rd Level Horse Performance Award - 2020
Speedy G - 2nd Level Horse Performance Award - 2018
Working Towards:
CDS Sapphire Rider Award Third Level: 63.514% Third Level: 62.105% Fourth Level: Fourth Level: 2023 Show Season
Show Rating (***) CDS/USDF/USEF (*) CDS (s) Schooling (c) Clinic (r) Ride-a-Test Clinic 2023 Show Schedule
TBD 2023 Completed … Pending 2023 Qualifying Scores
Regional Adult Amateur Competition (RAAC) Qualifying Training Level 3 Scores/2 Judges/60%: Score 1: Score 2: Score 3: Archives
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